There presently exists a considerable demand for a machine that is especially adapted for paving areas that are relatively narrow, and for use over surfaces that are rough and/or irregular, such as sidewalks, golf course paths, gutters, and the like. Road surfaces are normally paved using machines that are designed to receive, distribute, discharge and form wide carpets of the material, typical of which are those described in Potts U.S. Pat. No. 3,550,511, and Schraeder U.S. Pat. No. 3,992,124. Such machines are relatively large and complex, and lack appropriate capability and the maneuverability necessary to carry out, in a practical way, jobs of the foregoing nature.
Curb forming machines are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,707,422; 2,818,790; 3,053,156; 3,115,074, 3,175,478; 3,261,272; and 3,915,584. Although such machines tend to be considerably smaller, less cumbersome, and more maneuverable than the road carpeting machines, they are not generally suited for manual loading (such as from a wheelbarrow), they do not lend themselves to facile transport from one job site to another, and they normally require augers or other distributing means; moreover, the curb-laying machines are not, of course, generally useful for paving applications.
Devices known as "drag boxes" are in common use for laying carpets or mats of paving material. These entail the disadvantage of requiring separate propulsion means; furthermore, they are usually relatively large and cumbersome, they are not adapted for loading by manual means, and they do not readily lend themselves to direct control by the machine operator.
Accordingly, it is a primary object of the present invention to provide a novel, self-propelled machine for laying narrow mats of asphalt and similar materials over rough and/or irregular terrain, which machine is relatively small and maneuverable, to permit paving of difficult-to-reach locations.
It is a more specific object of the invention to provide such a machine in which no augers or other powered devices are required for delivery or distribution of the paving material to the ground surface, and which can be loaded from either side by use of a wheelbarrow.
Another object of the invention is to provide a machine of the foregoing nature in which adjustments can readily be made by the operator, either during paving operations or when the machine is idle, to change the width and/or the thickness of the mat.
A further object of the invention is to provide such a machine having the foregoing features and advantages, which is relatively uncomplicated and inexpensive to manufacture, and is highly convenient and facile to use.